There's something in the air. there's an excitement in the city. The sun is setting later and people are shedding some layers. Walking outside without 5 layers on is quickly becoming the norm. It seems like everyone starts to rediscover the city they live in as they begin to thaw out. Spring is the season of renewal and rebirth. Mother Nature is gifting us with new blooms and we start those new routines...
I was making my way to Daddy Dover's house on a Sunday and I overheard a conversation a man was having on his phone. He was speaking Spanish and telling the other person about the area he was in. "There are lots of stores around. It's busy, I can walk around. Yea, it's OK. I think it should be fine. I'll walk to see if there is one near by." I got the impression that he was talking to someone "back home". He was new to the area and he was telling them about what he was seeing. In that moment, I looked around and saw what he was describing. It didn't look particularly busy to me, but I've been in my neighborhood for over 20 years. I know it's ebbs and flows. To him, it was brand new though; and it hit me:
this may be old hat for me but to him this is Day One.
Every single day, someone is starting something new. Be it a job, a class, a lease, a diet, a new car; day one dealing with death, with heartbreak, with a new love. Someone is starting something every day. We get so caught up in wanting to be proficient in something immediately.
You gotta slow down...
Enjoy your newness.
I remember when I started a new job, I would beat myself up if I made mistakes or took too long to do something. I'd go home mentally exhausted and thinking of quitting because I just wasn't "getting it". When I first started the job I'm at now, I told myself to enjoy my "newness". I really liked my new job and I wanted to, of course wow my Managers, but as it goes, I made mistakes and took too long with some things. But I gave myself a solid three months. I told myself to ask all the questions. As the "new girl", I was entitled to ask all the questions, because how else would you learn? Remember that... you are entitled to ask questions. ALWAYS. There are no stupid questions. Something that may seem so elementary to one person is very complex to another. We shouldn't judge people on the questions they ask, especially when they are trying to learn.
So I decided to marinate in my newness for as long as possible. Letting go of that control of having to be perfect or "on top" really saved my sanity. I was able to give myself breathing room to grow. I also feel that my team was more receptive to help. They saw that I was eager to learn and WANTED to help me. Now I understand, I'm very lucky at my day job. It's the best place I've worked. My team members strive to be inclusive and are supportive. I know that's not available everywhere you go. However, you can only control how YOU deal with new stresses. Is someone making you feel "dumb" for asking "silly" questions? That's their problem, not yours. You know the way YOU process information best. They are just being inpatient...and that impatience is rooted in them, that has nothing to do with you because any new person is granted a learning curve.
Even if you're thrown into it and baptized by fire, you're expected to mess up.
Are you nervous about leaving your current job (which you hate) to have to start over at a new place? Are you afraid that this relationship is the best one you'll have, even though your boyfriend isn't being very nice to you. Are your new workouts kicking your ass and everything just hurts? Yea, I've been there too. Get that new job! Enjoy being the new person the team wants to get to know. Tell your boyfriend you need more NICE, if not, boy bye! Start seeing new people, see what the new market has to offer. The workouts are HARD, but they'll get easier. Once they do, that means you're getting stronger so you'll need to do newer things.
New is Good.
What's some newness on the horizon for you? Let me know!
xoSquared